Stage Challenge 2012: Pure as Snow

Well, another Stage Challenge came to a close, well.... other than our thank-you performance next week.  It is always such a busy time around the Performing Arts Suite, so taking a break to blog is a challenge.  Between costumes, make-up and all the forms, we never thought we would get it finished.  But we did.

And I was really proud of the students. 

Kieran Tankersley and Ariane Gleeson ran the show this year, coming up with the concept, choreography, rehearsals, soundtrack, forms, fundraising, you name it, they did it!  Crazy busy.  It has been so good for both girls, not for the credits, but for all the organisational and management skills they have learned along the way.

Along with Travis Brown who helped with choreography and rehearsals, if it was on stage, these 3 had a major hand in it.  Oliver Healy deserves a shout out for his castle and getting the set there.  Cole Garratt and Jasmine Turner were stellar with lighting and backstage work.  Danica Kawana and Alena-Rose Burt were invaluable in rehearsal as well.  The committee worked so hard to get the show on the road.

On the night we took out 4 awards, for Stage Use, Visual Enhancement, Creative Thinking and Storyboard, so we were pleased with the haul.

Our congratulations goes out to Makoura College for their routine about the Christchurch Earthquake and to the overall winners, Wairarapa College for their piece about Antarctica.  It was a proud night to be from the Wairarapa.

Ariane Gleeson as Snow White

Kieran Tankersley as the Evil Queen

Travis and Setty attack Ariane in Rehearsal

Ariane and Travis in Rehearsal

Those under the Queen's Control

The Finale

The final moment

Wordless Wednesday: National Youth Drama School

One of our students, Zoe Renor, spent her Easter holidays at the National Youth Drama School in Hastings.  She had a great time, as you can tell in the pictures.  She is the one in the hat at the front of the triangle.

"Tunes of I"

   $20,000 worth of Gear 

+ 24 Hours studio time 

+ Flights/Accomodation 

+ A years supply of Red Bull 

+ Facebook

+ You

= A massive opportunity for our ex-students.

Conway Jeune, musician extraordinaire, and his band, "Tunes of I" are in with a magnificent shot at a huge prize including band gear, studio time, and the opportunity for a choice national tour.  They need votes on Facebook.  If you have a Facebook account, please go and 'Like' the following link, then vote 'Tunes of I'.  You can vote once per day.

Please vote and share the link, as Conway, as all our ex-students, would totally make the most of this opportunity.

 

And there is a bonus.... you could win $500 just for voting.  What's not to lose?

VOTE HERE

Where are they now?

After nearly 3 years in the Arts Department at Kuranui, it has dawned on me that the place is magical.  Stressful, exhausting, thrilling, tedious, annoying, exciting, amazing and talentful.  I'm not even sure if the last one is even a word.... okay, so I KNOW it is not a word.

Anyway, the Arts are really demanding subjects.  As I have been reminding my Senior Drama classes, in English you study a book, in Drama you study it, memorise the whole thing, perform it in front of an audience, and everyone knows how much work you put in instantly.  Pouring your heart and soul into something and then hearing constructive criticism is hard, for anyone, any age.  Yet, our Arts students put themselves through the rigor and pain involved, all while hearing from other students that the Arts are chill-out subjects.

We have had some very talented students passing through our metaphorical halls.  Some have gone on to careers in the Arts, and some have chosen another path.  On a random 'as-and-when-I-feel-like-it-basis' we will be throwing in a 'Where are they now?' post, because we are very proud of our students, ex and current.  It takes a great deal of guts to do what we do, and we love to see how our students run with it after they leave.

So, watch this space.... intently ;)

Private Peaceful

This post is long overdue.  Back in the International Arts Festival, we played host to the touring company, Scamp Theatre from the UK.  They set up shop in our auditorium for the day to perform "Private Peaceful" in the evening.  It was a packed crowd on a hot night, and the show was amazing!

Private Peaceful relives the life of Private Tommo Peaceful, a young First World War soldier awaiting the firing squad at dawn. During the night he looks back at his short but joyful past growing up in rural Devon: his exciting first days at school; the accident in the forest that killed his father; his adventures with Molly, the love of his life; and the battles and injustices of war that brought him to the front line.

During the show he used over 20 different accents to create all the characters- totally magical and compelling.  Our students had a great time interacting with the company during the day, and helping out in the evening.

National Certificates

Last year we had great success in the Arts Department.  The Dominion Post has all the NCEA results published in it today, which is timely.... but actually, we had more success than even we planned on. 

We offered a "Performing Arts" course last year- a programme focussing on the technical aspects of performance.  What we didn't realise was that students taking the course suddenly became able to attain National Certifications.

We had 3 very successful Performing Arts Students.  Zoe Renor, Alena-Rose Burt and Alexandra Fleming all gained the National Certificate in Drama, and Alena-Rose Burt also attained the National Certificate in the Performing Arts.

To gain the National Certificate in Drama, students needed to complete 30 credits in Drama and 10 credits in a supporting subfield, which was the Performing Arts course for all 3.

To gain the National Certificate in the Performing Arts, Alena had to complete 45 credits in 3 areas of Performance, which she did with Drama, Dance and Performing Arts standards.

Zoe Renor and Alena-Rose Burt

Wordless Wednesday: Strumming the ol' Six String